Love
by The Lost and Found Box
Summary: /Six oneshots, each involving a Warriors romance! Not graphic./ "What can love mean to a Clan cat, anyway?"
1. Crush TigerXGolden

**Disclaimer: I don't own Warriors**

Love

Story One

Crush

Tigerpaw hid in the bushes, both startling amber eyes fixated on a pale ginger coat.

"What are you looking at?"

Tigerpaw spun around to meet the cold eyes of his father and mentor, Thistleclaw.

"Father!?" Tigerpaw yelped.

Thistleclaw snarled and looked into the bright blue sky above his head.

"Why must I be cursed with such an mouse-brained son? Dreaming about she-cats all day-long when he should be hunting for his Clan!" Thistleclaw yowled dramatically.

Tigerpaw flicked his gaze to the ground guiltily.

"I apologize father,"

"I suppose you should." Thistleclaw muttered in disgust. He stepped past Tigerpaw and looked at the group of apprentices his son was gazing at.

Standing in a circle and landing were Redpaw, Runningpaw, Mousepaw, Lionpaw and Goldenpaw. Thistleclaw drew back his head with a snort.

Tigerpaw looked up and quickly brought his head back down.

"Tigerpaw, listen to me, you'll never amount to anything if you gaze at she-cats all day! Do you understand? Nothing! She-cats are no good, you hear me?!" Thistleclaw shouted.

Tigerpaw brought his head lower to the ground still, and he was now aware at the curious eyes of his peers watching the bushes where his father and him stood.

"Especially that Goldenpaw! Tigerpaw do you hear me? Her blood is filthy with kittypet stink!" Thistleclaw yowled, pointing out the fact noone had forgotten. Goldenpaw's grandmother was a kittypet thrown out of her towlegs den, when she was pregnant with kits.

"Yes father! I understand!" Tigerpaw shouted, fighting back tears. Now many cats from the clan had been watching them.

Thistleclaw lowered his head so only Tigerpaw could hear. "You'd better." Thistleclaw turned around and walked away holding his head with every step, it was very apparent he found pleasure in humiliating his only son.

Tigerpaw turned to face the clan and found no surprise when their faces twisted in surprise. The last thing he caught sight of before he ran into the woods was Goldenpaws face, with a single tear dripping down it, turning away in shame.


	2. Sister LeafXCrow

Love

Story Two

Sister

Leafpool stared at the ground and gulped. She had just found out she was pregnant, the father being Crowfeather. Thoughts raced through her head, what ever was she to do?

"Leafpool?"

Leafpool turned her head to face Squirrelflight, her sister, who was also expecting kits.

"I came because I knew something was wrong… anything you want to tell me?" Squirrelflight asked stepping toward her sister.

Leafpool hesitated. Could she trust her sister with something like this? But before she could finally decide, everything that had happened in the past few moons flew out of her mouth, and tears from her eyes. Once she was done she looked up at her sister, not knowing what to expect.

"Oh, Leafpool!" Squirrelflight cried licking her sister on the shoulder.

"Squirrelflight, I just don't know what to do! I can't think of anything!" Leafpool sobbed, her head hung.

Squirrelflight looked thoughtful for a moment.

"I have an idea," she finally said, with a clever spark in her eyes.

--

"Firestar!" Leafpool called, catching Firestar as he was walking out of his den. The sky was now dark and a light autumn wind ruffled her fur, covering up the now retreating summer heat.

"Yes, Leafpool?" Firestar asked.

Leafpool gulped. Lying wasn't her best talent.

"St-starCan sent me a sign, they said that cats beyond the lake needed help, then they showed me a pool of leaves. I'm sure it means I must go help them."

Firestar looked thoughtful for a moment, his blazing green eyes studying his daughter. He sighed.

"If you must. How long do you think it will take? We will need someone to act as a medicine cat."

"As long as it takes, Brightheart knows all of the herbs, she can takeover."

"Very well, you shall leave tomorrow morning. I will announce it to the Clan. And, Leafpool? Be careful."

Leafpool nodded her head in respect, as she stepped away from her father. In her den she met Squirrelflight.

"How'd it go!" Squirrelflight asked excitement in her voice.

"He bought it, but are you sure this will all work out?" Leafpool asked fear and sorrow creeping into her eyes.

"I'm sure it will, don't worry a bit." Squirrelflight mewed reassuringly.

Leafpool brought her attention to her sister.

"Thank you… so much," she meowed silently.

"Anything sis."

**MERRY X-MAS FLORENCE, MALIKU AND ALL OF MY OTHER FABULOUS READERS!**


	3. Storm SwallowXRain

**Happy Valentines Day!! Hope you all had a good one. I just realized I hadn't updated love in like, forever! So for Valentines Day I decided to write something Florence Pinky-poo requested. I you have any requests just tell me, remember I can only take 7 more.**

**Disclaimer: If I was Erin Hunter, would I seriously be on fanfiction when I should be writing the next book?**

Love

Story Three

Storm

A silky dark tabby gracefully walked, unnoticed in a group of RiverClan cats, the full moon shined brightly, illuminating their pelts. The cats around the young she-cat all seemed dazed and happy to be going, especially a young apprentice that hopped joyfully at her side.

Of course, Swallowtail was happy to be getting out of the territory again, but another reason her eyes were full of happiness was a certain young ThunderClan tom, by the name of Rainwhisker. She had met him on what was now being called The Great Journey.

She smelled lake water and new that soon her claws would have to grip the cold, wet and slippery log, but did it really matter if she got to see her Rainwhisker again?

Timidly she stepped up onto the log. About half way across it the apprentice began to slip. Fast as a rabbit Swallowtail nudged the young cat up to balance again. That was another thing. Kits. Oh, how she longed for kits! Maybe, just maybe, Rainwhisker would agree.

Soon scents of ShadowClan and ThunderClan began to fill her nose, and before long she saw them all. Swallowtail stopped in her place as she tried to pick out a dark silver pelt. No such luck. _Maybe he just couldn't go to the gathering this time..._ she thought hopefully.

Swallowtail began to speak with Mistyfoot and Cedarheart, a ShadowClan cat, until the sent of WindClan filled the wind. Cedarheart said goodbye and walked over to an ill-tempered tom named Rowanclaw.

"Hopefully the Gathering will start soon." Mistyfoot meowed pleasantly before she walked closer to Leopardstar.

"Yeah." The she-cat agreed agreed weakly as Leopardstar began speaking. Swallowtail just drowned out her loud meow, as she decided to see if Rainwhisker was indeed at the gathering.

After Leopardstar, Firestar began to speak. The former kittypet talked about new apprentices and other things. Swallotail finally decided to tune in after she decided that Rainwhisker was not at the Gathering.

"Also, there is some bad news to announce." Firestar mewed solemnly.

Swallowtail listened closely.

"As you all know the last few nights have been rather stormy…" Firestar continued.

The RiverClan she-cat silently agreed. Two nights ago the wind and rain had been so fierce; a branch from a nearby tree had landed in the Elders Den. Swallowtail secretly smiled to herself. When Mistyfoot had asked if everyone was alright, one of the elders told her that the trees of the territory were coming alive.

"Well, three nights ago a branch broke from a tree and killed one of our warriors." Swallowtail gasped. It couldn't be Rainwhisker. The ThunderClan cats had a small touch of sadness of their faces.

"His name was Rainwhisker, and he was a great loss to our Clan." Firestar then took a moment of silence before signaling for Onestar to begin.

Her ears were ringing. No way. It couldn't happen. It's impossible. Rainwhisker… oh Rainwhisker! How could he….

The dark tabby she-cat sat paralyzed and mute until the gathering was over. On the way home she stayed silent, keeping a steady stride. He wasn't dead… it was all just a joke… a dream… just a dream….

"Swallowtail?" Mistyfoot asked a touch of concern in her mew.

"Mistyfoot?" Swallowtail tried to joke, but she knew her friend could see right through her disguise.

"Maybe… you should get some rest…." Mistyfoot asked.

"No, I'm fine, in fact I think I'll go for a swim, I mean, you never know when there is going to be another clear night, right?" The words raced out of her mouth. She looked at Mistyfoot for a moment before she ran as fast a cheetah out of camp.

* * *

She had been out of camp and wandering around RiverClan territory for only a little while, but she knew, for the sake of Mistyfoot, she must get back soon.

But she also knew her Rainwhisker was dead. Gone forever. She looked up into the sky. And yowled. A yowl of grief. Of sadness. Of insanity. And then it began to rain. It rained hard. Swallowtail sat under a fern, and watched as beautiful rain began to make the forest shimmer. Just like the shimmer in Rainwhisker's eyes. And she knew it was a sign.

**Fanficcers likey? Ah well, I admit it wasn't my best piece of work. But seriously, request I will do pretty much anything except : FireXSpotted, Slash pairings, and some Crack pairings (it really depends). So seriously, request! Request!**


	4. Forgiveness FireXSand

Love

Story Four

Forgiveness

"Sandstorm, won't you listen to me?"

"Won't you listen to me?"

Firestar awoke with a jolt, the dream slipping away from him. He had been having dreams much like this for the past few days, and although his relationship with Sandstorm was stronger than ever, with kits coming in less then two days, and, according to Cinderpelt, the pregnancy going better than expected.

Still, he had those little nagging thoughts that the raging seas nearly dried up would soon come back, at full force. He tried to kill those thoughts with dreams of healthy kits, maybe three. A two toms and a she-cat, he could already see it, teaching his eldest son how to hunt, playing with his other son in the nursery, finding the perfect feather on patrol and bringing it back, just to see the happiness in his daughters eyes.

Yes, those would be the days….

"Firestar?" a friendly voice broke the flame orange tom out of his dream-state.

"Yes?" he mewed, turning his head to see Greystripe standing in the entrance of his den.

"Finally, your awake, you sleepy-head!" Greystripe yowled in laughter, "Sandstorms been up for awhile, asking for you since dawn! Now hurry up, or she'll chew my tail out."

Firestar smiled, as well as a cat can smile, and followed his grey friend out into the clearing. The sky was clear and creamy blue, the sun casting a warm glow on the camp. A few cats were wandering around, some still sleeping, Firestar could also see that dawn patrol was returning, and from the peaceful looks on their faces, he could tell that nothing bad had happened.

Greystripe yowled for Firestar to hurry up and he obeyed. When they stopped at the front of the nursery Greystripe added to Firestar, "Hope you didn't do anything wrong."

"So do I," Firestar mumbled under his breath has his friend left him alone to his mate.

Sandstorm sat in the back of the nursery, rays of sunlight shining through the harmless cracks in the den wall, making the ginger queen look like StarClans most prized warrior.

"Hello, beautiful," Firestar greeted, not in a rude way, but more sweet than anything.

"Hi honey." Sandstorm purred, "I want to talk to you something that's been nagging me for, quite a while now." His mate's gaze didn't waver.

_Here it comes!_ The ThunderClan leader braced himself for the very worse, but all that came out of the she-cats mouth was, "I was wondering about kit names,"

"Hmm?"

"Kit names! I want to know your top she-cat and top tom, my top tom is Flamekit, and my top female is Squirrelkit," Sandstorm purred.

Firestar sighed and purred slightly, "Good, my top male name is Lightningkit and my top female name is," Firestar paused. He had never thought about this, really. What name would he choose? There were so many. One cat pranced lightly into his mind, her name was Leafstar, she was intelligent, pretty and important… that was it! "And my top she-cat name is Leafkit!"

Sandstorm widened her eyes and humpfed.

Firestar freaked out silently. He knew that face, but what had he done wrong? "What's wrong?"

"Oh, it's just you to ask!"

"I don't know what I could have possibly done!" The heavenly glow that surrounded Sandstorm was gone, and she shifted away from her mate, showing a very pregnant tummy.

"Oh, really? Well, let's see, Leafkit, who does that remind you of?"

"You're kidding me! You always bring that up, over the littlest things! Besides, it was just an apprentice crush, and she's long and dead!"

"So you think that our kits name is just a "little thing"!"

"No, that is not what I mean!"

"Well then enlighten me, "all perfect leader of ThunderClan"!"

Firestar sighed. This is exactly what he didn't want to happen. "Please, Sandstorm, why won't you listen to me?"

"Why won't you listen to me!?" Sandstorm hissed at the orange tom.

Firstar sighed and shook his head. "You know what, I'm not doing this. I don't want to put any stress on you when you're like this-"

"Oh, so now I'm the damsel in distress!?" the ginger queen cut him off.

Firestar sighed again and turned his head. "I wanted to name our daughter after Leafstar, not Spottedleaf. So if you'll just let me leave, I will." Sandstorm said nothing and let her mate walk out the entrance to the den.

The leader noticed the strange change in weather, as dark storm clouds began to gather over the forest, sending cold gusts of wind. As if on cue, a heavy shimmering rain sprinkled out of them, growing in force. Firestar saw Greystripe out of the corner of his eye, wondering what had happened in the nursery.

When the former-kittypet finally reached his den, he stretched on the cozy nest. He could sleep the day away if he wanted. In fact, maybe he would…

--

"Firestar! Firestar! Wake up!" The tom once again awoke to the face of his best-friend, this time the sky view from the entrance of his home was dark and a few stars twinkled against the black back-drop.

"What is it? I'm not really in the mood," he groaned.

"But Sandstorm's kitting!"

Firestar jumped up and nearly beat Greystripe out the door, he sprinted through the dark camp and was only stopped when Dustpelt, who was hired by Cinderpelt, apparently, told the excited going-to-be father to wait.

Although it was probably only and hour or so, it seemed like forever and a day, when finally, Cinderpelt stepped out.

"They're waiting," she purred and added, "I'm sorry it took so long, I had to let Sandstorm rest,"

The tom stepped into the nursery, happy when he saw Sandstorm's eyes gazing back at him peacefully, and two kits, happily suckling their mother.

"They're beautiful!" Firestar gasped.

"Two females, both absolutely beautiful and healthy, the delivery went wonderfully," she then added, "I want you to name the first one."

Firestar paused and looked at the beautiful young kit with a warm mix of ginger fur.

"This one will be named Squirrelkit," he purred warmly, with this "tribute" Sandstorm couldn't be mad at him anymore, right?

The ginger queen purred in agreement and looked down at the light brown tabby she-cat with white paws and chest. She looked thoughtful for a moment before finally mewing quietly, with increasing volume, "And this one will be named Leafkit, after the strong, caring and kind leader of SkyClan."

The leader let out a rumble of a purr and licked his mate on the head once, before snuggling up against her.

"I love you, Sandstorm."

"I love you too."

**In reply to the reveiw: I'm sorry and thank you for all the requests! I just can't write FireXSpotted.**

**Sorry about the long no-updatey. I realized yesterday that it was two months since I last updated and I'm like, Uh Oh!**


	5. I Really, Really Like You RowanXTawny

**Okay, so yeah, it's RowanxTawny. I tried to make a BramblexSquirrel one but no plot bunnies attacked me, but when I saw Streamcloud's review, many plot bunnies attacked me. I picked the one that didn't require me to get a rabies shot.**

**Comments and Constructive Criticism always welcome. No flames, please. Tell me if you liked it, or if you have an idea for BramblexSquirrel, cause I really don't.**

Love

Story Five

I Really, Really like You

"You actually like that ThunderClan reject? Please!" a dark brown tom known only by the name of Toadfoot yowled in laughter.

"Well, if you must know, yes." Rowanclaw meowed gruffly, angered by his friends reaction, "Besides, she has a good bloodline. Tigerstar may not have been the best, but he was better than a lot of our leaders." The ginger tom tried to create a distraction of sorts. His friend would never believe him if he said the reason he truly liked Tawnypelt was because of her good lucks and delightfully sarcastic but caring personality…

Toadfoot hooted again. "Okay then ThunderClan lover!" he yowled again. Rowanclaw rolled his eyes. Why he even hung out with this buffoon was beyond him.

"Okay then mouse-brain, who do you like?" the other tom snarled.

Toadfoot paused. "Russetfur or Ivytail, whichever you prefer!"

"Russetfur and Blackstar already have a thing going on and my apprentice! What's wrong with you?!"

"Many things my dear friend," the dark brown tom stated happily. "Now c'mon, we came out here to hunt," he said looking around the piney territory.

"Yeah," Rowanclaw agreed half-heartedly, his mind still occupied with the thoughts of the tortoise-shell she-cat.

* * *

"Oh, be quiet Snowbird!" Goldenflowers only daughter hissed, jokingly.

"C'mon Tawnypelt! Why can't you tell me who you like?" the white she-cat questioned.

"Because, it's way to embarrassing." the tortoise-shell she-cat tried to look past her friend's pouting gaze.

"Nothing's too embarrassing. Besides I already told you who I like!"

"Snowbird, everyone knows who you like. You two are practically mates."

"Yeah, you're probably right."

The white ShadowClan she-cat shifted herself to a more comfortable position in the center of the camp. "But still, who do you like?"

Tawnypelt rolled her eyes. "Promise you won't tell?"

"Promise,"

"I like Rowanclaw,"

Snowbird paused, her white face emotion-less. "Really?"

"Yeah,"

"You know, he was practically a she-cat for the first half of his life,"

"That's not true, and you know it!" the tortie ShadowClan she-cat retorted.

"What ever you say, Tawnypelt," the white she-cat commented, "Let's talk about something else, seeing as you have probably scarred me for the rest of my life," Tawnypelt rolled her eyes, "so how's the prey running?"

A dark ginger she-cat snickered silently from the side of the camp. Just wait until every she-cat or kit in ShadowClan hears about this!

* * *

"How could you tell? Half the Clan knows already, Rowanclaw most likely included," Tawnypelt snarled at her former friend. Their previous conversation had happened nearly hours ago, and now the sun sank into the ground. In those previous hours _someone_had told every she-cat in the Clan about Tawnypelt's crush on Rowanclaw.

"I swear Tawnypelt, I didn't tell! Is that like me at all?" Snowbird begged. Why did Tawnypelt think it was her? Anyone could have been listening!

"I don't know, Snowbird, is that like you?" Tawnypelt hissed before she ran off. Where she went she didn't care, as long as she was away.

* * *

Rowanclaw sat at the edge of the territory, gazing soundly into the Lake. Somehow every one had found out he liked Tawnypelt. Toadfoot wouldn't have told, would he? The last thing the ginger tom wanted was to confront his crush now. Who knows, maybe Tawnypelt was laughing at his foolishness with Snowbird and Ivytail in the Warriors Den right now?

A sudden familiar sent caught Rowanclaw of guard as it drifted through the breeze that ruffled his fur, before flying into the colorful sunset that fell gracefully behind the land. _Tawnypelt…_ Oh, why did she have to show up now?

He spun around, ready to leave this spot, before being crashed into by a familiar tortie she-cat.

"Tawnypelt!"

"Rowanclaw!"

Both cats stared at each other, the mere awkwardness of this moment still setting in.

"I didn't know you'd be here…" the former ThunderClanner mewed, looking down at the ground.

Rowanclaw stayed silent.

"Look, I'm sorry about the rumors! None of them were true!" Tawnypelt lied, trying to put on a tough persona.

The ShadowClan tom kept wordless. Her last statement came as a crushing blow, but her tried his best to hide it.

"Unless…" Tawnypelt didn't make eye contact. She felt her face getting hot. She was glad that she had a mask of fur; otherwise this moment would have been even more unbearable.

Rowanclaw brought his head up. "Unless?" he mewed quietly. Don't try to act too interested, he told himself over again. But don't be too stuck-up. Or should he be? Maybe the tortoise-shell likes stuck up guys?

"Unless… you want them to be true." Tawnypelt choked. She really did suck at this romantic stuff, as Snowbird would say. Speaking of Snowbird, the she-cat really would have to apologize.

"I would be delighted to have them be true." Rowanclaw meowed happily. Is this really happening? It really must be. No, Toadfoot must have knocked him out or something. This was just a dream.

A loud rumble of purr escaped Tawnypelts throat. "Wow, I really have to learn to control that!" she yowled in a sort of happy, over-the-top way. She snapped her mouth closed.

"Tawnypelt?"

"Yes?"

"I really, really like you,"

"I really, really like you, too,"


	6. Loosing Faith RussetXBlack

**Sorry for the long update time! I've been procrastinating. Haha. xD I would love me some concrit too.**

**Two ShadowClanner oneshots in a row! Yeah, thats because ShadowClan rocks.**

**SPOILERS FOR ECLIPSE BELOW!**

Love

Story Six

Loosing Faith

A dark ginger she-cat lay awake in the ShadowClan warriors den, her mind busy and running with her current situation.

Blackstar had recently announced that he had lost faith in StarClan after they had given no warning against the battle and the sun going out. His mind was preoccupied with his conversations with Sol, the loner –_ traveler_ – that had actually warned the Clans about the sun disappearing.

Russetfur knew that her leader and… _crush_ was loosing faith in his ancestors and the world around them – but was he loosing faith in her?

--

Russetfur could feel the burn of ShadowClanner eyes staring at her as she slinked through the camp, trying to look strong and ultimately failing. She knew how bad she looked. Blackstar had retreated to his den with Sol, barely ever coming out, content with giving Russetfur all of the duties of a Clan leader AND deputy without any notice. Quite frankly, the dark ginger she-cat was very exhausted.

Small rays of sunshine had broken through the clouds in the sky, the morning light falling in various places around the camp. Somewhere near the nursery Russetfur could hear Tigerkit call back eagerly to his mother, "The sun is still here!". Littlecloud was still tending to some of the warriors with wounds from the battle, and a few cats just wandered around the camp, looking for something to do.

Russetfur's belly grumbled as she neared the fresh kill pile. Her hunger was doubled by her exhaustion and the cold air around her. Her mood plummeted when she realized it was almost empty, and that she'd have to form a hunting patrol. In the past few days she had realized why leaders needed their deputies so much, not because they needed someone to look after the place when they were gone, or because of the warrior code Blackstar refused to believe was really true any more, but because of how tiring it would be to have to form all of the patrols and do everything.

Russetfur's caught a glimpse of Sol coming out of the leader's den, then retreating back inside it. Anger welled up in her belly. Sol. He was the reason this all started - no. He wasn't the reason that it all started, he was the sole reason that it had gotten worse. If he wasn't there, Blackstar might've just suspected it was a sign from StarClan, he might have just suspected... he might have just thought...

Russetfur dug her claws into the ground, digging up dirt. Her tail lashed with anger. She must have looked ridiculous, just standing there, staring off into space with anger and annoyance flowing off her pelt.

"Russetfur?" She turned around to face Rowanclaw, with a worried look on his face. He had a rather fresh looking scar along his right shoulder, and he was limping slightly, but he was still good old Rowanclaw with the kind look in his eyes reserved only for other Clan mates.

"Mhmm," she acknowledged Rowanclaw. She had begun to calm down, but still felt like dung, pathetic and over-used.

"You look very tired, why don't you sleep for a little while longer? I'll take care of the patrols, you get some rest. You look horrible," he offered. Russetfur blinked for a moment, before purring gratefully in agreement and going back to the warriors den. There she cuddled into her nest and slept, finally slept.

--

She woke up feeling refreshed and happy, but she didn't want to leave her warm nest. From the look of the sky outside she had slept a couple hours past sunhigh. A few cats mingled, sharing tongues, but most were out doing something. Blackstar was lying in the middle of the camp, bathing in whatever sun the clouds let break through. Though he was out of his den, the tom still seemed forlorn and indifferent to his surroundings. The few cats out avoided their leader, unsure of what to do.

Russetfur sighed, looking down at her paws. He wasn't the Blackstar he used to be. What would happen if this would just keep going on? Would ShadowClan leave the lake? Were they even a Clan any more? Would ShadowClan overthrow their leader? Did the warrior code matter? Was StarClan even there? Although the ginger she-cat wasn't Clan born, she still believed in the Clan of Stars. They seemed like the best explanation for things.

Her belly grumbled. She hadn't eaten all day. An unfamiliar sent flooded her nose. Her fur standed on end, only because she wasn't expecting any one to be in the den. She turned her head back to see Sol, his long brown and tortoise-shell fur glistening slightly in the shadowy warriprs den. Her heart started beating faster. He was the last person she wanted to see right now, besides, she wasn't entirely sure of how safe he was.

"You love Blackstar," he mewed bluntly, his smooth voice sending Russetfur even more off edge. Her fur stood on end and she muffled a snarl.

"You have no right to be saying such things. You don't even have the right to be here, you shouldn't be in ShadowClan, diluting Blackstar's faith. Leave. You are unwanted." She snarled, her tail lashed with anger and her ears were hot with embarrassment. She could tell that Sol was testing her, and if he didn't stop soon she would rip the fur right off his body.

"Please don't try to hide it. Almost everybody knows, you'll just look foolish," he lied convincingly. Her Clan mates weren't that observant, especially now that they were preoccupied with the eclipse. But to someone as observant as Sol, it was very obvious. Sometimes he didn't understand how cats could be so blind to the world around them. StarClan wasn't all-knowing, they were just observant, and they weren't even that watchful of their surroundings. Sol couldn't understand why the Clans couldn't realize that the answers lied within themselves, not a bunch of lazy dead warriors.

Russetfur felt her ears grow hotter with embarrassment. "Just go!" She showed her teeth menacingly and dug her claws into the ground. Her tail lashed violently.

Sol didn't seemed frightened by Russetfur, he was still calm. Not a dash of fear scent had sifted off his wild pelt. "If you never tell him then he'll never know," he meowed passively, brushing past Russetfur and out of the den. The dark ginger she-cat stood in the den, confused. Should she really tell Blackstar how she felt about him? Sol was right. Her eyes wandered to the white and black tom laying in the center of camp, indifferent to life around him.

Before she knew it, Russetfur began to walk toward Blackstar. Some of the warriors who had been around the camp had left. Near the edge of camp Dawnkit and Tigerkit played fight with each other while Snowbird watched uninterested. Tawnyfur must be sleeping. An elder was snoozing near the warriors den, Scorchpaw was quickly eating some sort of bird, probably eager to go to training. Sol was studying a fly as it buzzed around the fresh-kill pile, looking for something to eat. Nobody was near enough to hear Russetfur or Blackstar say anything.

As she neared her leader, Blackstar rolled around to face her. They stared at eachother for a moment, before Russetfur started to say something. She was cut off by Blackstar. "Have you come to tell me that you think my judgement is wrong? That you think I'm not good enough for the Clan? That I'm not a true warrior, that I'm full of mouse dung?" he meowed with an edge to his voice. He studied her intently, causing Russetfur to become even more embarrassed. Was she really going to do this?

"No, of course not. I'd never say something as disloyal. I just wanted to tell you that I -"

"What is loyalty any more? Being loyal to the warrior code, or to StarClan or to who? Me?" Blackstar cut Russetfur off. Russetfur sighed, and Blackstar sensed her annoyance. "I'm sorry," he started, "everything around me has been changing. I don't know who to trust, or what to trust. Do you know what happens to a cat who looses faith? They can never truly live. I'm loosing faith in everything around me," he whispered, looking at the ground. Russetfur back away, she could tell that it was very hard for him to say this, especially to her.

"But I'll never loose faith in you," he mewed quietly with a softness to his voice. He looked up at her like a lost kit, a gaze that melted her heart. She felt her mouth twitch into the best smile a cat could give and a quiet purr escaped her throat. Blackstar sighed, and let his head fall back down. Spinning around on her back foot, Russetfur walked a couple feet away from her love.

Sol stood on the other side of the camp. Their future was bound to be in shadow, maybe in complete secrecy. But at least they truly loved each other.


End file.
